Denmark will go to Qatar football World Cup 2022: sports minister

The Danish sports minister said on Wednesday that a boycott of the football World Cup in Qatar is not the answer, despite claiming it is "a wrong decision" to stage the 2022 tournament in the Gulf nation.

Speaking a day after Denmark qualified for the tournament, Ane Halsboe-Joergensen told broadcaster TV2 that the team will go to World Cup.

Qatar has faced criticism amid allegations of discriminatory laws and conditions for the migrant workers preparing the Gulf nation for next year’s tournament.

However, Doha drew praise from International Trade Union Confederation General Secretary Sharron Barrow in May after workers were given improved safeguards against the heat.

"We welcome this new legislation and commend the Government of Qatar for its continued efforts to protect workers' health and safety at work," Barrow said in a statement at the time.

In March, according to the United Nations' International Labour Organization, the Middle Eastern state also became "the first country in the region to introduce a non-discriminatory minimum wage".

No country has announced plans to boycott the World Cup, although Norway is facing calls to do so from some clubs, including Rosenborg and Tromso.

Any country that qualified for the World Cup and refused to play would face punishment from FIFA, including a fine and ban from trying to qualify for the next tournament.

Giving up a place in Qatar would likely mean self-expulsion from the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. That tournament will have 48 teams, with 16 places going to European teams instead of 13.

FIFA plans to postpone the Club World Cup because of the Covid-19 pandemic. So... when will the Cup take place? https://t.co/tpRwF2m1Fp

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) October 8, 2021

FIFA has not yet published regulations for the 2022 tournament, though rules for the 2018 edition called for imposing a fine of at least 250,000 Swiss francs ($290,000) on a federation which withdrew its team up to 30 days before the start. Teams that pulled out in the month before kickoff or during the tournament would be fined at least 500,000 Swiss francs ($580,000).

Natural gas-rich Qatar has spent tens of billions of dollars to build hotels, a new transport system and lavish stadiums to cope with staging the event.

Denmark beat Austria 1-0 Tuesday to earn a spot in the tournament.